Did HBO Have You at Hello (Ladies)?

Hello Ladies, HBO’s new comedy from Stephen Merchant (Extras), is hilariously hard-to-watch — did you make it all the way through the premiere (at 10:30/9:30c)?

The new single-cam sitcom follows Brit web designer Stuart as he navigates L.A.’s social scene with about as much grace as a twerking Miley Cyrus. Over and over, he comes in like a wrecking ball, and, over and over, all the ladies do is wreck him. It’s tought to muster up sympathy for Stuart, whose signature “Hello, ladies” greeting comes with equal measures of naïveté and smarm.

In the first episode, Stuart attends a club opening in an attempt to woo Courtney (guest star Sarah Wright, Parks and Recreation). Predictably but hilariously, his come-ons go terribly wrong, and he is left with an $800 bar tab and a lap full of tequila.

Joining Stuart on this misadventure are Wade (Nate Torrence, Mr. Sunshine), a sad-sack who pulls out his Toshiba laptop at the club to show off pictures of his soon-to-be-ex-wife, and Kives (Kevin Weisman, Alias), whose wheelchair does not prevent him from nabbing chicks with more skill and success than either of his friends. The show is clearly building to a romantic plotline between Stuart and his tenant Jessica (the excellent Christine Woods, FlashForward), who seems to be the only person in his life to call him out on his awkwardness.

Merchant, who also writes and directs the series, always makes us profoundly uncomfortable, but in the best way possible. We can’t wait to see how he manages to make more ladies say “Goodbye, man!”

But enough about what we thought: What was your take on Hello Ladies? Grade the episode via the poll below, then hit the comments to back up your choice!